New Beer Alert – The All Oktoberfest Beers Edition
New Beer Alert – The All Oktoberfest Beers Edition
(Courtesy Firestone Walker Brewing)
It’s Oktoberfest season, and American craft brewers are looking to fall with an ever-evolving roster of seasonal lagers you’re gonna want to have around.
Firestone Walker Oaktoberfest
Firestone Oaktoberfest (a riff on Firestone Walker’s longtime commitment to brewing and aging beer in oak barrels) has been a seasonal staple for Paso Robles craft brewery dating back to the inaugural release in 2006. Each year, however, Firestone Walker changes things up a little and the 2025 release mixes things up by featuring two classic German hops—Tettnanger and Hersbrucker
Brewed in a manner that pretty much defines what Firestone Walker is all about, the 2025 Oaktoberfest Oak Aged Lager is a robust 5.2% ABV tribute to both European tradition and California innovation.
It was cold lagered in French oak barrels inherited from a Napa Valley winery. The barrels were previously used to mature the winery’s acclaimed Cabernet Sauvignon. The oak-barrel lagering allows for an even smoother texture, all while remaining true to the beer’s crisp malt profile and hints of noble hops.
“Oaktoberfest delivers the best of both worlds,” said Brewmaster Matt Brynildson., full, malty flavor with a crisp, easygoing body that’s perfect as summer fades into fall. It’s a beer that carries the spirit of our journeys through Germany’s hop fields and the vibes of Oktoberfest itself, all with a dash of California character.”
(Courtesy Sierra Nevada Brewing)
Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest Festbier
Oktoberfest season is ON and Sierra Nevada Brewing is celebrating things with one of the most interesting collaboration beers of 2025.
A collaboration with Störtebeker, an internationally recognized award-winning German brewer, Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest is a 6% ABV modern Festbier which leans into its rich, smooth malt backbone with notes of fresh-baked bread and honey. Traditional German hops (Opal, Perle, Spalter Select, Tradition) provide balanced bitterness and herbal-spicy aroma, rounding things out with a crisp, clean finish.
BrewDog Oktoberfest
BrewDog USA, the US arm of the Scotland-headquartered global craft brewer, has terrific new seasonal that’s just in time for all the fall beer celebrations.
Brewed with a classic blend of Munich and Vienna malts, BrewDog Oktoberfest is a rich and impeccably clean, 5.5% ABV Marzan Lager tethered to a sweet toasty malt backbone that gives way a crisp, dry finish.
Paulaner Oktoberfest Beers
When it comes to the best Oktoberfest beers one has to look to Munich, home to the original Oktoberfest celebration. For over 100 years, the Märzen style (a full-bodied malt-rich lager) ruled Munich’s Oktoberfest. But In 1990, festival organizers realized that modern tastes were changing and that festival-goers were asking for something lighter.
(Courtesy Paulaner USA)
And Paulaner USA offers both of them in the states…
Paulaner Oktoberfest Märzen – Brewed with uncompromising standards that strictly adhere to the Reinheitsgebot, using only 4 ingredients (water, hops, yeast and malt} this is the Oktoberfest original. Brimming with rich malt flavor and lingering toffee tones Paulaner has been brewing this 5.8% ABV classic for almost 400 years.
Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier – Brewed once a year and only available while supplies last, this is the beer you’ll find offered in the Paulaner tent in Munich. And now, Paulaner USA is making this full-bodied deep golden 6% ABV Pale Lager more available than ever before.
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The Enduring Legacy of Oktoberfest in Munich
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